We Are Seven by William Wordsworth | Structure, Summary, Analysis

 

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘We Are Seven’ is a poem by William Wordsworth that he wrote in 1798. The poem was published in 1798 in Lyrical Ballads, a poetry collection that contains works by Wordsworth and his friend and collaborator Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The poem was republished in 1820 as a broadside or poster titled "The Little Maid and the Gentleman". The poem depicts a general chitchat between a little girl and a grown-up young gentleman. The gentleman asks the young girl about her family. Though two of her siblings are dead, and only four are alive, she insists (over the protests of the man) that she and her brothers and sisters "are seven" in total. The man, however, thinks that they are only five. He thinks that the dead just don't count. The man tries to reason with the young girl ensuing a battle between emotions and logic. The girl informs that she now lives at home alone with her mother, yet, insists that they are seven siblings.

The gentleman and the little maid never reach an agreement and the man realizes that he and the little girl think about death differently. The gentleman wonders if children just might understand the meaning of death way better than we grown-ups do. The poem deals with the themes of the nature of death and the strength of familial bonding.

Structure of We Are Seven:

The poem consists of 69 lines set in 16 quatrains and a final five-line stanza (cinquain). The poem is written in ballad form though it follows the traditional rhyming scheme of ballads ABAB. However, in some instances, the poet used the rhyming scheme of ABCB (in the beginning stanza). The poem predominantly follows the common meter or ballad meter which consists of alternating lines between iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter. The speaker of the poem is a grown-up gentleman whom the little girl addresses as ‘Sir.’ He is a city dweller though the girl belongs to a rustic rural area. Wordsworth used Anaphora, Consonance, Repetition, Rhetorical Question, Assonance, and Aporia in the poem.

Summary of We Are Seven:

Stanza 1 Lines 1-4

“———A simple Child,

That lightly draws its breath,

And feels its life in every limb,

What should it know of death?”

The speaker begins the opening stanza by raising a seemingly simple and abstract rhetorical question: what can a child know about death? He describes the child as very vivacious; the child "lightly draws its breath" and "feels its life in every limb." For the speaker, nothing is more lively and vibrant than this child. The speaker contrasts supposedly adult wisdom with childlike naivete. The speaker assumes the child does not understand death as he does. He uses "simple" and "it" to describe the child, dehumanizing and belittling the little maid, before she is even introduced, which suggests his seeming superiority on account of being grown-up and mature. However, the fact that the poem begins with this question and the ending rhyme of ‘breath’, and ‘death’ suggest that the speaker might be wrong.

The first line contains only four syllables but it begins midway through the line, suggesting that the other four syllables have been omitted. Thus, the stanza follows a ballad meter of alternating iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter lines.

Stanza 2-3 Lines 5 - 12

“I met a little cottage Girl:

She was eight years old, she said;

Her hair was thick with many a curl

That clustered round her head.

She had a rustic, woodland air,

And she was wildly clad:

Her eyes were fair, and very fair;

—Her beauty made me glad.”

In these stanzas, the speaker describes an incident when he met an anonymous girl while walking. The "little cottage Girl," who is eight years old, has curly hair.   He describes her “clusters” or curls around her head and her very light eyes. The speaker depicts the girl in the poem as part of a simple rustic world, clothed ‘wildly’ as if she doesn’t fully belong to the civilized society of the towns and cities. However, she is ‘very fair’ and beautiful. Her very fair skin also makes the little girl seem innocent (fairness and light are often associated with innocence). The little girl makes the gentleman feel ‘glad’ and he thinks of beginning a conversation.

Stanza 4 Lines 13 – 16

““Sisters and brothers, little Maid,

How many may you be?”

“How many? Seven in all,” she said,

And wondering looked at me.”

In this stanza, the speaker begins a dialogue with the little maid. He addresses the child as a ‘little maid.’ Maid here doesn’t mean house-helper or servant, rather maid is used to address an unmarried young woman with respect, and little maid suggests she is just a child, eight years old. He asks a rather innocuous question, how many sisters and brothers she has? The little girl looks at the speaker "wondering," and answers ‘seven.’ She might be wondering why this stranger is asking me such a question, or maybe she was wondering what she should answer, but she did answer ‘seven.’

The gentleman asks again,

Stanzas 5-6 Lines 17 - 24

““And where are they? I pray you tell.”

She answered, “Seven are we;

And two of us at Conway dwell,

And two are gone to sea.

“Two of us in the church-yard lie,

My sister and my brother;

And, in the church-yard cottage, I

Dwell near them with my mother.””

In these stanzas, the poem reaches to its contradiction. As the girl answers that they are seven siblings, the gentleman is intrigued, he finds her alone. So he asks, the girl where her siblings are, and she reiterates, "Seven are we." She's really proud of her six siblings. She informs that her two siblings are in Conway (a town in Wales). Two others are "gone to sea" (perhaps they are sailors or merchants). And then comes the crux of the poem. The little maid says that two of her other siblings, a sister, and a brother of hers, lie in the ‘church-yard,’ which means they are dead. She further informs that she "dwell[s] near" her dead sis and bro, in the church-yard cottage with her mother. The little girl doesn’t overtly show her pain, sadness, or despair, but the gentleman feels for her. He realizes that at such a tender age, the girl has witnessed death and loss. However, that is not his primary contention.

Stanza 7 Lines 25 - 28

““You say that two at Conway dwell,

And two are gone to sea,

Yet ye are seven! I pray you tell,

Sweet Maid, how this may be.””

The speaker does the math. He wonders, here is the girl, her siblings in Conway, her siblings who are out to sea, and that total comes to… five. "Yet ye are seven!" he exclaims. The speaker apparently doesn’t have the heart to mention the two buried siblings, but he does question how she can claim to belong to a family with seven children when four are away. He asks her, “Sweet maid, how this may be?” This brings the contention of the poem, ‘Do the dead count?’ 

Stanza 8-9 Lines 29 - 36

“Then did the little Maid reply,

“Seven boys and girls are we;

Two of us in the church-yard lie,

Beneath the church-yard tree.”

“You run about, my little Maid,

Your limbs they are alive;

If two are in the church-yard laid,

Then ye are only five.””

The girl seems resolute and asserts ‘Seven boys and girls are we.’ The girl has no doubts about her number of siblings as she counts the ‘two of us,’ ‘beneath the church-yard tree.’ The gentleman is impressed by the little girl’s assertion but it strikes his ego and he clings to logic. He reasons that the little maid is lively, she runs around. The two of her siblings are laid in the church-yard, they are dead, and hence, he tries to reason that ‘they are only five.’ Logically, he sounds correct, but do the dead don’t count? Aren’t they no longer her siblings just because they are dead? This is the crux of the poem.

Stanza 10-11-12 Lines 37 – 48

““Their graves are green, they may be seen,”

The little Maid replied,

“Twelve steps or more from my mother’s door,

And they are side by side.

“My stockings there I often knit,

My kerchief there I hem;

And there upon the ground I sit,

And sing a song to them.

“And often after sun-set, Sir,

When it is light and fair,

I take my little porringer,

And eat my supper there.”

In these lines, the girl astonishes the speaker. Though little and innocent, she makes it clear that she understands the gentleman’s point of view but asserts that she has a different understanding, and tries to explain it to him in the utmost decent and respectful manner, addressing him ‘Sir.’ She engages in debate while offering her reasons. The graves of her dead brother and sister are ‘green’, implying they are fresh and her siblings have only recently died. She explains how her dead siblings are part of her daily life. They are only "twelve steps" from where she lives with her mom, and they are laid "side by side" Even in death, the siblings are physically close, even closer than the other lively ones in Conway or the ones who are out to sea. She further stresses that though they are dead, she interacts with them, claiming she often knits there and sits on their graves to sing to them. She also tells the gentleman that she often takes her "porringer" (a shallow bowl) out to the churchyard to eat with them. It should be noted that unlike today when we can use the internet, mail, telephones, and smartphones, there was no way for the little girl to interact with her living siblings in those days. While she could feel closeness with those, who recently died and whose graves are still green. They may be dead, but they are very present in her life.

Stanza 13-14-15 Lines 49 – 60

““The first that died was sister Jane;

In bed she moaning lay,

Till God released her of her pain;

And then she went away.

“So in the church-yard she was laid;

And, when the grass was dry,

Together round her grave we played,

My brother John and I.

“And when the ground was white with snow,

And I could run and slide,

My brother John was forced to go,

And he lies by her side.””

In these lines, the little maid reminisces about her recent past, informing the gentleman that her sister Jane was the one who died first. She might be ill or injured as she kept moaning in her bed and suffered cruel pain. ‘God released her of her pain’ and she died. The girl paints her death as a relief for her sister rather than a gloomy thing for herself. She and her brother John used to play near her grave when the grass was still green. When the winter came, the ground was ‘white with snow’ and the little girl continued playing around her sister’s grave as she ran and slid in the snow. Then John died too. Each new season brings death. It’s worth remembering that life in rural communities was tough in the eighteenth century, with no welfare state and a system of poor relief that was patchy at best. Death was pretty common in those days.

The little girl makes it clear that though her sister was suffering from a long painful illness and her death was a sort of relief to her, John was "forced to go." It sounds like John's death was unexpected. The little maid doesn’t see his death as a release from suffering. He was as playful and healthy as the girl was. These different circumstances of the death of her siblings suggest that she has a pretty deep idea of what death is.

Stanza 16 – 17 Lines 61 – 69

““How many are you, then,” said I,

“If they two are in heaven?”

Quick was the little Maid’s reply,

“O Master! we are seven.”

“But they are dead; those two are dead!

Their spirits are in heaven!”

’Twas throwing words away; for still

The little Maid would have her will,

And said, “Nay, we are seven!””

The gentleman listens to the girl with intent, without interrupting her, which suggests that he is intrigued by her thoughts. Yet he asserts himself to change the little girl’s mind. He questions again, so, if two of you "are in heaven," how many are you all together? The girl feels his frustration but maintains her stance, and exclaims, "O Master! we are seven." The gentleman seems incredulous, he doesn’t stop. He is obviously irritated that the girl did not seem aware of her loss but rather continued to live as if her siblings were simply away for a while. Thus, he asserts ‘but they are dead,’ and repeats, ‘those two are dead!’ He appears cruel, which he is, but his intention is just to make the girl realize that her two siblings are no more. However, he realizes that his seemingly cruel words too are of no use and says that even these exclamations are "throwing words away." The little girl won't listen. The little girl asserting her "will" repeats what she has been saying all poem long: "We are seven!"

So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!

A Real Durwan by Jhumpa Lahiri | Characters, Summary, Analysis

 

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘A Real Durwan’ is the fourth story from the short story collection ‘Interpreter of Maladies’ by Jhumpa Lahiri, published in 1999. The story collection was awarded with the Pulitzer Prize in 2000. ‘Durwan’ means a door-keeper in both Hindi and Bengali languages. The story depicts how materialism consumes people's emotional worth
. It highlights the stark realities of class divisions and the resentment they breed, as seen in the character of Boori Ma and her interactions with the building's residents. The story also delves into the significance of truth and memory, highlighting how perspectives and interpretations shape our understanding of events. Furthermore, the theme of social alienation and division is prominent, exploring the isolation and marginalization experienced by Boori Ma within her community. The impact of judgment and the lack of empathy towards those perceived as liars also feature significantly. The story touches upon materialism, status, and the search for contentment in the face of societal pressures. Partition and the ensuing mass exodus is also a major theme. In the exile of Hindus from Muslim lands and vice versa, millions of people were left homeless. Boori Ma, though she may be lying about her previous wealth, is proven to be a refugee by her accent.

Characters of A Real Durwan:

Boori Maa is the main character of the story. She is a 64-year-old Bengali woman who has been a refugee since Partition in 1947. As a durwan, or “doorkeeper,” it is her job to clean the apartment building where she lives and watch the front door in exchange for a place to sleep and eat. She is an outsider in comparison to the people who live in the building since she is a solitary woman, in a lower class. Her tales of the lost luxuries of her life before Partition entertain the residents, though they suspect that the tales hold a few elements of truth. Boori Ma is accused of alerting robbers when a recently installed basin is stolen from the stairwell. She is dependent on the power of her memories (or delusions) and on the kindness of her neighbors. When she loses the latter, she cannot maintain the former. Mr. Dalal is a lower-level salesman of plumbing supplies. He lives with his dissatisfied wife in the building that Boori Ma maintains. He suddenly gets an increment and promotion that makes him somewhat rich. His newfound moderate wealth prompts him to buy a communal wash basin for the building and a private one for his home. This influences other residents to make changes themselves. The purchasing of basins for the building causes a renovation boom among his neighbors. Societal pressure encourages a race for materialism. Mrs. Dalal is a kind woman who takes good care of Boori Maa. However, she is dissatisfied by her financial situation and often browbeats her husband, Mr. Dalal who tries to appease his wife with lavish gifts and a vacation. Out of kindness, she offers to buy a new set of bedding for the old woman. But while Mrs. Dalal is a major figure in Boori Ma's life, the old woman is just a footnote for Mrs. Dalal. She forgets about the new bedding after the arrival of the basins. Presumably, she would have prevented Boori Ma's expulsion had she not been out of town. Mr. Chatterjee is the eldest resident of the building that Boori Ma maintains. Even though the narrator shares that Mr. Chatterjee has not opened a newspaper since 1947, he is considered the most erudite intellectual in the apartment. When he recommends that the apartment needs a real durwan, everybody agrees and Boori Ma is thrown out.
Summary of The Real Durwan:

The story is told from the point of view of a third-person narrator who introduces Boori Maa, a 64-year-old woman, frail from many years of manual work. She lives and works in a residential building in Calcutta, India. Each day, like the one that begins the story, she sweeps the steps and cleans around the building. As she cleans, she talks about the luxuries of her former life, one that existed before Partition (the division of India and Pakistan in 1947) when she still lived in Bengal. 

As she is growing old, the task of maintaining the building’s four floors is becoming difficult for her, especially as the rainy season nears. Still, she has diligently taken up many duties even beyond sweeping. She keeps a good watch of the apartment.

While working, she often tells the stories of her past in her raspy attractive voice. She was separated from her husband, two daughters, and home because of partition. Tied to the end of her sari is a set of skeleton keys belonging to coffer boxes that housed her valuables. She chronicles the easier times in her life, the feasts and servants, and the marble floor of her home. The details of her journey across the border shift in each retelling. Often people pinpointed and accused of lying but her tales were so impassioned that no one could dismiss her outright. She occasionally garbles her facts and contradicts herself. Each litany ends with the same phrase, “Believe me, don’t believe me.” Boori Ma’s accent confirms she is from Bengal, and the residents don’t doubt she is a refugee, but they debate the veracity of her claims of wealth. However, because she does such an excellent job maintaining their building, they do not argue with her. Occasionally, they even invite her into their rooms for tea and biscuits. Boori Ma’s careful attention to the building causes the residents to see themselves as having “a real durwan.” For the lower class society, it is a symbol of pride.

Everyone interprets her according to their views. Mr. Dalal fails to understand how a woman so rich ended up sweeping the floors of their apartment. His wife thinks she is the victim of changing times. Mr. Chatterjee believes she simply mourns her family and wraps herself in illusion. Despite the innocuous lies, everyone likes her.  Mr. Chatterjee has not left his balcony or even opened a newspaper since Independence, but all the residents greatly respect his opinions.

However, times never remain the same. In the coming monsoon season, Boori Maa suffers knee ache. She also fails to sleep well for several nights due to an intensely itchy back, which she blames either on mites or on a spirit living in her bedding. Mrs. Dalal has a particular affection for Boori Ma. She takes an interest in the aging woman's health and decides that Boori Ma needs a new bed. Mr. Dalal, a low-class salesman of plumbing gears suddenly gets a promotion and becomes the manager of his firm with an increment. To celebrate his success, he buys two washbasins from his firm. One for his own flat, and one common, for the whole apartment to be used by the other residents. Mrs. Dalal is not happy about it. She considers it a waste of money, but, after a day of loud arguments, she begins to enjoy their newfound prosperity. That evening, Mr. Dalal demonstrated the public basin's functions. Unexpectedly, however, petty resentments and jealousies break out among the wives when they discuss the new amenity. The other residents of the apartment are not happy about it. They think Mr. Dalal is showing off his newly found richness. They feel jealous and hurt, and feel the need to compete and assert themselves. The women of the apartments continue to backbite Dalals, talking about costly cooking ingredients, sumptuous saris, and other absurd extravagances that Mrs. Dalal uses.

Mrs. Dalal is unhappy and complains that the washbasin for their flat is not classy. Mr. Dalal decides to appease his wife with lavish gifts and a vacation. The Dalals leave without yet having replaced Boori Ma’s bedding, but Mrs. Dalal promises they will bring back a special blanket for her. While they are gone, the building’s renovations continue. The importance of Boori Maa is reduced. Many workers are renovating other flats in the apartment. Boori Maa begins feeling alienated and lonely. To ease her isolation, she spends the life savings she has kept in her sari since she fled Bengal and buys herself small treats. But one day, as she wanders through the market, she feels a tug on the end of her sari, and her life savings and the skeleton keys disappear. She fears it is a bad omen.  When she returns to the building, she learns there has been a burglary in her absence. Someone stole the basin Mr. Dalal paid to have installed. 

All the residents gather around her, accusing her of being in cahoots with the thief. Boori Ma denies the accusations: “Believe me, believe me”, she says. The residents know her for the contradictory stories of her past. They say, how can they believe her now? The residents seek the advice of Mr. Chatterjee. Mr. Chatterjee says that Boori Ma’s “mouth has always been filled with ash.” He indicates that it is difficult to trust her or to believe that she assisted the burglars. However, things have changed. Mr. Chatterjee says that the building has changed and so have the residents. The building is much nicer now and the residents appear richer. Now they do not need a Boori Maa but ‘a real Durwan’. The residents agree. They decide to throw away the Boori Maa and appoint a real Durwan’ in place of her.

So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of Indian English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!

William Empson | New Criticism | Seven Types of Ambiguity, Milton’s God

 

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. William Empson (1906-1984) was a highly influential English literary critic and poet, renowned for his contributions to literary theory and criticism, particularly in the context of New Criticism. Empson is best known for his practice of close reading, which involves a detailed analysis of texts to uncover deeper meanings and ambiguities. This method became a cornerstone of New Criticism, emphasizing the text itself over authorial intent or historical context. However, Empson himself didn’t adhere to any school of literary criticism. He criticized the school of New Criticism as "the new rigor", a "campaign to make poetry as dull as possible" (in his book Essays on Renaissance Literature Vol.1). He particularly criticized William K. Wimsatt’s idea of Intentional Fallacy. Despite that, William Empson and his works continued to influence and shape the ideas of New Criticism as an influential school of literary theory and criticism.

Major Works of William Empson:

Milton’s God:

Milton’s God is a significant work by William Empson, published in 1961. In this book, Empson explores the complexities of John Milton's portrayal of God in his epic poem "Paradise Lost." The book is an example of close reading because it analyzes the Christian God through the lens of Empson's extreme rationalism. Rather than being influenced by the religious ethos, Empson paid close interest to the text of the epic and on the details of the passage, such as the words, syntax, and sentence structure. In addition, he also emphasized how the passage is said, in addition to what is said. In Milton’s God,  Empson critically examines how Milton's depiction of God reflects a tension between traditional Christian beliefs and Milton's own rationalist views. He argues that Milton's God is not a straightforward representation of the Christian deity but rather embodies contradictions and complexities. Empson's extreme rationalism leads him to question the positive valuation of the Christian God, suggesting that Paradise Lost reveals an underlying unease with the nature of divinity as traditionally understood. Satan in Paradise Lost faced a choice of whether he should submit to the will of god or he should be his own hero. He was close to God and wanted to submit but there was a clash between the authority of God and his own desires of success, and progress. In the poem, if the reader ignores Milton’s view and the Christian ideology, they will face the same dilemma that Satan faced, if he accepts and submits to God’s will, he will have to lose his desires and needs. He was the archangel, supreme of all the rest. He had to choose, if he adhered to God’s will, he knew he wouldn’t remain superior. Thus he made his choice and declared, “Better to rule in hell than be slave in heaven.” 

Empson also attributed a rival interpretive tradition dating to the Romantic poets (esp. William Blake). In Empson’s interpretation, Milton portrayed God as a villain and gave Satan all the proper virtues of a classical epic hero. In The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1790-93), Blake declared that Milton was “a true Poet and of the Devil’s party without knowing it.” Echoing Blake, Empson stated, “The reason why the poem [i.e. Paradise Lost] is so good is that it makes God so bad.”

Seven Types of Ambiguity:

William Empson’s Seven Types of Ambiguity is an analysis of Poetic Ambivalence.

Seven Types of Ambiguity is a significant work of literary criticism by William Empson, first published in 1930. This book is considered one of the most influential critical works of the 20th century and played a crucial role in the development of New Criticism. In this work, Empson explores the concept of ambiguity in poetry and literature, categorizing it into seven distinct types. His analysis aims to enhance the reader's understanding of a poem by isolating the linguistic properties of the text.

Empson suggested that the words or references in a poem are often ambiguous. He says that each word, phrase, and text in a poem can be interpreted in more than one way. He highlighted seven types of ambiguity that are commonly found in poetic verses.

Ambiguity of Meaning: This type arises when a word or phrase has multiple meanings, leading to different interpretations.

Ambiguity of Reference: This occurs when it is unclear what a word or phrase refers to within the context of the text.

Ambiguity of Tone: This type involves uncertainty about the speaker's attitude or emotional state.

Ambiguity of Structure: This arises from the way a sentence or phrase is constructed, which can lead to multiple interpretations.

Ambiguity of Context: This type is related to the broader context in which a text is situated, affecting its interpretation.

Ambiguity of Intention: This involves uncertainty about the author's purpose or intention behind a particular choice of words or themes. Two words that are opposites within context expose a fundamental division in the author's mind.

Ambiguity of Form refers to the interplay between the text's form and its content, leading to various interpretations.

He further elaborated on the use of metaphors, antithesis, and allegory, which enriches ambiguity in the text.

Ambiguity of Metaphor: Empson identifies metaphor as a significant source of ambiguity, particularly in how it allows for multiple interpretations. The concept is similar to that of Metaphysical conceit. Metaphor is used to correlate two unrelated things with different properties. For example, James Joyce in Ulysses says ‘History is a nightmare from which I am trying to wake.” The author is comparing history and nightmare. So according to James Joyce, history and nightmares share certain similarities and that is why he is putting them together in a metaphor. But for the reader, the statement will appear confusing and ambiguous. If history is like a nightmare, then there must be a lot of similarities between history and a nightmare, which suggests that all history is nightmarish, harrowing, and sad. But history can be beautiful, and memorable too. As in William Wordsworth’s poems, the speaker keeps taking inspiration from the memories of his past. Thus, the metaphor comparing history and nightmare offers a lot of ambiguity. Because of this ambiguity, a lot of different interpretations can come from the same statement by James Joyce (History is a nightmare from which I am trying to wake.) The same statement will mean different for different readers. Some may agree, with it, some may disagree, and some may ridicule it. However, this ambiguity is not associated with all phrases. If someone says ‘The sun rises in the east,’ it means the same for everyone.

Ambiguity of Antithesis: Empson describes antithesis as a rhetorical device that juxtaposes contrasting ideas or phrases. This contrast can create a tension that invites various interpretations. Antithesis is the use of contrasting concepts. For example, Hamlet says, ‘To be or Not to Be.’ The ambiguity of antithesis arises when the opposing elements are not merely in conflict but also interact in a way that enriches the text. This interaction can lead to a deeper understanding of the themes and emotions being conveyed.

Ambiguity of Allegory: Empson defines allegory as a narrative technique in which characters, events, and details symbolize broader concepts and ideas. This layered meaning can lead to multiple interpretations, as the allegorical elements may resonate differently with various readers. In George Orwell’s Animal Farm, the totalitarianism of Soviet Russia had been allegorized. A reader, who disregards the historical context, will face an interpretive puzzle in the text.

Some other important works by William Empson include Some Versions of Pastoral (1935), Using Biography (1985), Faustus and the Censor (1987), and Essays on Renaissance Literature: Volume 1, 2 (1993, 94).

So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of Literary theory and criticism. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!

Auguries of Innocence by William Blake | Structure, Summary, Analysis

 

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘Auguries of Innocence’ is a poem by William Blake that remained unpublished during his lifetime but was later published in 1863. The poem was probably written in 1803 in which Blake infused his ideas of contradiction expressed in his collection Songs of Innocence and Experience within a single poem. Thus, the poem offers the construction of both an innocent, child-like narrative, and a mature, adult narrative and puts them together to show the hypocrisy and the chaos of life. The speaker offers various images of innocence, juxtaposing them with images of corruption, decay, or evil. ‘Auguries’ means omens or signs. The poem is a long assembly of conflicted situations laden with warnings and omens of judgment. The poem draws a line pitting the innocent or underprivileged against those blessed and elite. The poem offers many paradoxes, vivid animal imagery, and strong themes about social inequality, and the oppression of animals, the poor, and children.

Structure of Auguries of Innocence:

The poem consists of 132 lines composed in a single stanza. The first four lines are written in the nursery rhyming scheme ABAB while the remaining lines are written as couplets following the rhyming scheme of AABBCCDD and so on. The poem follows no definite metrical scheme but Blake predominantly used iambic meter throughout the poem though there are variations including spondee, trochee, and anapest. The first four lines are the most popular and oft-quoted lines by William Blake. These lines offer the general introduction to the whole poem and suggest a mathematical integration to understand the whole in the very small, and pondering those metaphysical concepts beyond man's comprehension by observing them locally. The poet used alliteration, repetition, metonymy, metaphors, and simile throughout the poem. The main theme of the poem is the oppression and exploitation of the underprivileged and innocents by the elite and the religious structure of the society. The poem raises concerns about the misconstruction of ideas such as mercy, piety, love, and faith by the money-hungry bishops and nuns of the Church of England. The poet emphasizes the power of human creativity and freedom; and the spiritual unity with the divine which doesn’t require any mediator.

Summary of Auguries of Innocence:

Lines 1-4

“To see a World in a Grain of Sand

And a Heaven in a Wild Flower 

Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand 

And Eternity in an hour”

The first quatrain is the most popular, often used by wrongly suggesting that they express the definition of poetry as a whole (What is Poetry?). However, the poet is not writing about poetry, rather it is a social commentary. The poet uses vivid imagery and symbolism to express a radical idea that the infinite (“Heaven”) can be seen through something that is not even human, but still life, very small (“through a Wildflower”). The poet describes what is innocence and suggests that innocence is to look at a “Wild Flower” and see “a heaven” of happiness whilst others would simply walk by without noticing it.

In the next two lines, the poet offers some mathematical integration while suggesting that the whole can be understood in its entirety by studying the very small part of it. The general idea is that a person has more control over time if they stop to see the bigger picture in everyday things, as this allows them to live life in a more wholesome manner instead of always worrying about time slipping through their fingers. The speaker suggests that eternal life is not what one should think about, rather they should develop the skill to live eternity within an hour, a moment. The poet continues to employ the mathematical idea of integration in the rest of the poem.

Lines 5-8

“A Robin Red breast in a Cage

Puts all Heaven in a Rage 

A Dove house filld with Doves & Pigeons

Shudders Hell thr' all its regions ”

The birds symbolize ‘freedom and innocence’ being destroyed by man: putting birds in cages or birdhouses restricts their freedom, and is abhorrent to the poet. The red color often depicts the devil and according to Blake, the devil represents free will, dare, and the ability to question authority (Marriage of Heaven and Hell). Cage a bird is an act of brutality that creates rage and shudders in Heaven and Hell. The poem was written during the period of the French Revolution and the American Revolution. These lines indicate Blake’s opposition to slavery and apartheid. Blake abhorred slavery and believed in racial and sexual equality. Several of his poems and paintings express a notion of universal humanity. The poet describes humanity enslaving humanity, as an act so diabolical, that even the Devil finds it overwhelmingly evil.

Lines 9-12

“A dog starvd at his Masters Gate

Predicts the ruin of the State 

A Horse misusd upon the Road

Calls to Heaven for Human blood”

In these lines, the poet describes the interrelatedness between these different aspects of society: the way we treat (or mistreat) animals informs the way we view our fellow humans whom we consider beneath us. In short, if we will let our dogs starve, we will probably let the poorest people among us starve, too. However, the poet is not just expressing his annoyance against the mistreatment of animals. He mentions that the condition of this dog is a clear prediction that the state will be ruined. In fact, the dog represents the common citizenry, the poor, the underprivileged, and the downtrodden, while the master is the government. The speaker accuses the state and government and their inability to care for their people and says that the ill-situation of the common citizenry is an indication of the state in ruins. While the dog represents loyalty, starvation leads to drastic measures. The homeless, the poor, the hungry, and the unemployed soldiers often turn to crime to support their families. While the dog represents poor dilapidated soldiers, the horse represents mistreated slaves, workers exploited in mills, the Chimney sweepers. The idea is that the strength and prosperity of a nation cannot be measured by the grandeur of its rulers, the elites. One should rather look for the underprivileged and the downtrodden. If the state is not taking care of them, it is in ruins. A similar idea was used by Mahatma Gandhi in his Talisman, “Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man [woman] whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him [her]. Will he [she] gain anything by it? Will it restore him [her] to a control over his [her] own life and destiny?” ~ Mahatma Gandhi!

Lines 13-16

“Each outcry of the hunted Hare

A fibre from the Brain does tear 

A Skylark wounded in the wing 

A Cherubim does cease to sing ”

The offers more animal imagery maintaining the notion that the innocent always become prey to abuse. The speaker expresses his disagreement against hunting games by the elites and says that even Heaven doesn’t approve of it. A Cherubim is an angel. It stops its signing at the wound of a bird (Skylark) or a hare hunted down, affirming animal rights in the reign of God. The poet also indicates and opposes the colonial expansionist ideas of the British government which becomes clear in the following lines.

Lines 17-20

“The Game Cock clipd & armd for fight

Does the Rising Sun affright 

Every Wolfs & Lions howl

Raises from Hell a Human Soul ”

The cock here represents the soldiers forced to follow the orders of the state, as if they are game cocks, ordained to fight other human beings, to exploit, oppress, and enslave them. Parallel to this, the poet also criticizes the rooster games and says that the howls of lions and wolves when they are hunted down tremble heaven as if the human soul is rising from hell. The poet relates animal cruelty to belonging in hell, which implies that hurting the innocent is an act that is considered worthy of hate or devilish, and so is the idea of attacking, winning, and colonizing other lands.

Lines 21-24

“The wild deer, wandring here & there 

Keeps the Human Soul from Care 

The Lamb misusd breeds Public Strife

And yet forgives the Butchers knife ”

In these lines, the poet expresses his disdain against the common hypocrisy and says that while we appreciate a wild deer, and often oppose hunting of wild animals, or the abuse of animals in farms. But when the same lamb is cut down by a butcher to prepare delicacies, we forget everything. The poet raises the question of why it is not acceptable to hunt wild animals but it is fine to slaughter lambs, cows, and pigs at butcher houses and eat them.

Lines 25-28

“The Bat that flits at close of Eve

Has left the Brain that wont Believe

The Owl that calls upon the Night

Speaks the Unbelievers fright”

The speaker compares the animal rights believers who enjoy the meat of cocks, lambs, and cows to bling bat that flies “close to eve” and is said to have left the “brain that wont believe.” The poet says that such hypocritical people who cry for animal rights while tasting delicacies made of murdered animals are blind to logic and reason. The Wise Owl, on the other hand, addresses the hypocrisy or blindness of these bats, or hypocritical people who are afraid of the owl speaking the truth and highlighting their hypocrisy.

Lines 29-32

“He who shall hurt the little Wren

Shall never be belovd by Men 

He who the Ox to wrath has movd

Shall never be by Woman lovd”

The speaker declares that anyone who hunts birds and enrages Ox or kills them to impress women should never be loved by women or anyone in society.

Lines 33-36

“The wanton Boy that kills the Fly

Shall feel the Spiders enmity 

He who torments the Chafers Sprite

Weaves a Bower in endless Night ”

The poet continues to criticize those people who although oppose cruelty against animals continue to destroy the lives of little animals carelessly. He mentions a careless little boy who kills a fly, for no reason or benefits at all and so he earns the “Spiders enmity”. The enmity of the spider could be because he killed a potential meal for the spider, causing more harm than he intended.

The speaker suggests that even little insects, such as beetles, have souls, and harming them can cause you to be lost in a lonely “endless night,” referring to hell.

Lines 37-40

“The Catterpiller on the Leaf

Repeats to thee thy Mothers grief 

Kill not the Moth nor Butterfly 

For the Last Judgment draweth nigh ”

The poet continues to mention even the smallest “animals” like moths, butterflies, and caterpillars because he is focusing so heavily on their innocence and the basic right to live life without cruelty. The speaker asserts that every life matters and even killing a butterfly or moth counts as murder in God’s eyes.

Lines 41-44

“He who shall train the Horse to War

Shall never pass the Polar Bar 

The Beggars Dog & Widows Cat 

Feed them & thou wilt grow fat ”

In these lines, the poet stresses the principle of Karma, suggesting that a person’s actions have consequences especially when they target animals. If someone trains a horse to fight a war, he misses the spiritual world. On the other hand, those who show mercy on innocent animals and the poor gentry, the beggars and widows, will grow rich and fat.

Lines 45-48

“The Gnat that sings his Summers Song

Poison gets from Slanders tongue 

The poison of the Snake & Newt

Is the sweat of Envys Foot ”

The speaker continues to discuss little animals in nature while pointing out the ills of human society and says that a happy gnat singing happily in summer won’t harm anyone unless it is disturbed. A snake or a newt won’t bite if no one footsteps on them. While mentioning these animals, the poet points out at envy of people who often slander against others for their achievements. Blake relates the poison of slander to the poison of jealousy.

Lines 49-52

“The poison of the Honey Bee

Is the Artists Jealousy

The Princes Robes & Beggars Rags

Are Toadstools on the Misers Bags ”

The poet continues to highlight how we humans are more dangerous than the little creatures of nature. He mentions the miserliness and the attitude of hoarding of the rich class who won’t help beggars and downtrodden. He questions why don’t humans have the innocence to help those who have very little by expecting those who have a lot to share.

Lines 53-58

“A Truth thats told with bad intent

Beats all the Lies you can invent 

It is right it should be so 

Man was made for Joy & Woe 

And when this we rightly know 

Thro the World we safely go”

In these lines, the poet suggests that intent is more important than truth. He accuses the rulers and politicians who would justify harm and injustice by using facts to support their position. He says that when people speak the truth and expose it only to make matters worse intentionally, it is worse than lying to cover up wrongdoing; mainly because the intent is conniving.

The poet says that he does not know if the purpose of a man is to do good or bad, but when someone knows what is good and what is bad, it is their choice to be either the abuser or the helper.

Lines 59-62

“Joy & Woe are woven fine 

A Clothing for the soul divine 

Under every grief & pine

Runs a joy with silken twine ”

The poet shifts the discussion and says that joys and suffering are intertwined as humans we are to face both. Expecting only pleasure and joy without any hardship and woes is foolish because they are interwoven. The poet says that we humans are not perfect beings, we can do both good and bad. But when we realize what is good and bad, we should opt to live a life that is not harmful to anyone, not even the little creatures of nature.

In the remaining couplets of the poem the poet continues to highlight universal interdependence, the principle idea that there exists a correspondence between equivalent entities that lie on completely different planes. He continues to pinpoint human folly and exhorts people to opt for the righteous path. At the end of the poem, he reiterates the belief in God, which saves us: we are born in a dark place, and we might die in that dark place, however at the end of our lives, we will come to terms with God, and things will be made better.

So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!

Imitations of Drowning by Anne Sexton | Line-by-Line Explanation, Summary

 

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘Imitations of Drowning’ is a poem by Anne Sexton from her Pulitzer Prize-winning poetic collection 'Live or Die' published in 1966. She was a confessional poet who raised concerns related to her bipolar disorder, suicidal tendencies, and intimate details from her private life in her poetry. In 'Imitations of Drowning', Sexton used drowning as a metaphor to symbolize the fear individuals face while dealing with troubles in their lives. The speaker mentions the futility of trying to escape this fear and says that the fear tends to push individuals into isolation, a loneliness that may prove to be worse than death. In her poem ‘Wanting to Die’, Sexton glorifies her desire to embrace death but in this poem, she offers a sharp contrast while expressing her fear of death and how it is drowning her.

Structure of Imitations of Drowning:

The 56-line poem is set in 7 stanzas of 8 lines each (Octaves). The poem is written in free verse and hence there is no strict definite meter or rhyming scheme though there is a hint of slanting rhyme. The poet has used metaphors, symbolism, imagery, caesura, enjambment, and assonance in the poem. It is a confessional verse written in first person narrative style and the speaker is the poet herself, expressing her emotions.

Summary of Imitations of Drowning:

Stanza 1 Lines 1-8

“Fear
of drowning,
fear of being that alone,
kept me busy making a deal
as if I could buy
my way out of it
and it worked for two years
and all of July.”

The poem starts with the speaker saying she's afraid of drowning, and it's been on her mind a lot. She's tried to bargain with the fear to make it go away, but it didn't work. The phrase "fear of being that alone" suggests that the fear of drowning is not just a physical threat but also a profound isolation, a loneliness so intense that it's like death itself. Sexton shows how pointless it is to try to escape this fear. The speaker admits that her efforts worked for a while, but only "for two years and all of July." The limited-time shows that she can't avoid facing the fear forever, and she needs to confront the fear head-on.

Stanza 2 Lines 9-16

“This August I began to dream of drowning. The dying
went on and on in water as white and clear
as the gin I drink each day at half-past five.
Going down for the last time, the last breath lying,
I grapple with eels like ropes - it's ether, it's queer
and then, at last, it's done. Now the scavengers arrive,
the hard crawlers who come to clean up the ocean floor.
And death, that old butcher, will bother me no more.”

In August, the speaker begins to have vivid dreams of drowning. The water in the dream is "white and clear as the gin I drink every day at half past five," suggesting a daily coping ritual. The drowning is a slow, inevitable descent, where the speaker struggles with "eels like ropes," a nightmarish image that blurs the line between reality and surrealism. The speaker's mind is a place where the mundane and terrifying merge. The speaker is at once drowning in a dream and drinking gin in reality, and the lines between the two blur. the speaker describes the act of drowning as a slow, inevitable descent, "going down for the last time." The speaker grapples with "eels like ropes," a nightmarish image that blurs the line between reality and surrealism. The speaker's struggle with the eels is a metaphor for the speaker's struggle with the act of drowning. The eels represent the speaker's fears and insecurities, which prevent the speaker from coming to terms with death. The idea is simple, trying to avoid the troubles out of fear is not a solution, one has to face the situation to resolve it, otherwise, he is sure to drown.

This poem is a meditation on death. The speaker is drowning, and as she does, she sees "scavengers" coming to "clean up the ocean floor" after she has succumbed. The speaker portrays death as a predator and a disposer, a force that strips away the remnants of life without ceremony. The speaker's relief at the prospect that "death... will bother me no more" suggests a resigned acceptance, a desire for release from the relentless fear that has plagued her.

Stanza 3 Lines 17-24

“I
had never
had this dream before
except twice when my parents
clung to rafts
and sat together for death,
frozen
like lewd photographs.”

The poem then shifts to a reflection on past dreams of drowning, specifically recalling the speaker's parents "clung to rafts / and sat together for death." The image of the parents frozen "like lewd photographs" underscores the morbidity and helplessness associated with the dream. 

Stanza 4 Lines 25-32

“Who listens to dreams? Only symbols for something -
like money for the analyst or your mother's wig,
the arm I almost lost in the washroom wringer,
following fear to its core, tugging the old string.
But real drowning is for someone else. It's too big
to put in your mouth on purpose, it puts hot stingers
in your tongue and vomit in your nose as your lungs break.
Tossed like a wet dog by that juggler, you die awake.”

In this stanza, the speaker questions the significance of dreams, acknowledging that they are often dismissed as mere symbols, but she emphasizes that the fear embedded in these dreams is real and potent. The mention of the "arm I almost lost in the washroom wringer" adds a personal anecdote of near-disaster, further illustrating how fear permeates even the most mundane aspects of life.

The poet then contrasts the symbolic nature of dreams with the reality of drowning, asserting that "real drowning is for someone else. It's too big / to put in your mouth on purpose." Here, she underscores the uncontrollable nature of true fear, which cannot be neatly contained or dismissed. The description of drowning as an experience that "puts hot stingers / in your tongue and vomit in your nose as your lungs break" is visceral and unsettling, capturing the physical agony and panic that accompanies the act of drowning.

Stanza 5 Lines 33-40

“Fear,
a motor,
pumps me around and around
until I fade slowly
and the crowd laughs.
I fade out, an old bicycle rider
whose odds are measured
in actuary graphs.”

The speaker elaborated more on fear as a relentless force, likened to a "motor" that drives the speaker around in circles until she fades away, "an old bicycle rider / whose odds are measured / in actuary graphs." This metaphor highlights the inevitability of death and the statistical calculations that quantify human life, reducing it to numbers and probabilities.

Stanza 6 Lines 41-48

“This weekend the papers were black with the new highway
fatalities and in Boston the strangler found another victim
and we were all in Truro drinking beer and writing checks.
The others rode the surf, commanding rafts like sleighs.
I swam - but the tide came in like ten thousand orgasms.
I swam - but the waves were higher than horses' necks.
I was shut up in that closet, until, biting the door,
they dragged me out, dribbling urine on the gritty shore.”

The speaker further elaborates on the inevitability of death and mentions how death may hit someone in several ways. She mentions the ‘highway fatalities’ and the murder by strangulation in Boston, suggesting that the fear is futile and death is inevitable. Yet, her fear kept her from facing the problem but that brought nothing but humiliation.  The speaker's struggle against the waves and the eventual, humiliating rescue where she is "dribbling urine on the gritty shore." The imagery here is raw and unflinching, emphasizing the loss of dignity in the face of overpowering fear.

Stanza 7 Lines 49-56

“Breathe!
And you'll know . . .
an ant in a pot of chocolate,
it boils
and surrounds you.
There is no news in fear
but in the end it's fear
that drowns you.”

Sexton offers another vivid imagery to describe the fear, comparing the individual fearing death to ‘an ant in a pot of chocolate.’ The ant is addicted to the chocolate, the taste of life that it is not ready to give up. However, the chocolate keeps melting and then boiling, revealing itself as the fear the ant wishes to avoid. "There is no news in fear / but in the end it's fear / that drowns you." Sexton acknowledges that fear is an omnipresent, ordinary aspect of life, yet it holds the power to overwhelm and consume. In "Imitations of Drowning," Sexton masterfully weaves together the physical and psychological dimensions of fear, creating a powerful meditation on the inescapable nature of human anxiety and how it can suffocate the soul.

So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of American English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!